Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble - In Step

In Step embraces blues and rock without compromising the primal joys of either. This is Stevie Ray Vaughan's best studio album and the first he recorded sober. "Travis Walk" offers a heady rush of flat-picking, "The House is Rockin'" is full-tilt roots-boogie, "Let Me Love You Baby" and "Leave My Girl Alone" are sweet blues epiphanies, and the nine-minute instrumental "Riviera Paradise" is a truly soulful mix of blues and jazz. By now, just a year before his untimely death, Vaughan had also tamed his bawling voice into a rich instrument. In short, this 1989 session is Vaughan at his artistic peak. And the four compelling live performances added to this reissue--"The House Is Rockin'," "Let Me Love You Baby," "Texas Flood," and "Life Without You," all from the In Step tour--prove there was no studio trickery involved. It's raw blues-rock perfection. --Ted Drozdowski Amazon.com essential recording

(4.5 stars) IN STEP...STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN SOULFULLY ROCKIN' THE BLUES ! (SRV's last album)

Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble's In Step (1989) finds SRV clean and sober, yet still as intense and powerful as ever. Sadly, this would be their last album as Stevie was tragically killed in a helicopter crash one year after In Step was released. On October 3, 2008, Stevie Ray Vaughan would have been fifty four years old.

In Step is a very good album with several great songs on it. It features more rock and funky soul music than straight up blues, and that's OK with me even though I love the blues. Stevie's singing is as impassioned here as it ever has been, and his guitar work on this album is spectacular as ever. He does include some traditional blues, most notably the SRV slow blues treatment of Buddy Guy's Leave My Girl Alone. It's no Texas Flood, but if you lean your head back and close your eyes, it will get you to where you want the blues to take you. He does a romp n' rockin' version of Willie Dixon's Let Me Love You Baby and this ripping cover of Howlin' Wolf's Love Me Darlin' sounds like something out of fellow Texas bluesman Johnny Winter's playbook.

Crossfire is the big winner on the album. It's a soulful and rockin' tune that includes a horn section and sounds like bluesy soul music with a powerful blues/rock electric guitar. It's a lonely plea for help from a disillusioned soul who has been left to fend for himself in a world full of greed and thoughtlessness.

I am stranded, caught in the crossfire
I need some kind of kindness
Some kind of sympathy

Tightrope and Wall Of Denial are also good bluesy rockin' soul music tunes that feature Stevie's intense guitar solos. It seems that Stevie wanted to explore new ways to express himself and still stay true to his blues roots on this album, and he is successful at both. The 1950s rock and boogie anthem The House Is Rockin' is a lot of fun and it rocks, too.

When the house is a rockin' don't bother knockin'
When the house is a rockin' don't bother, come on in

Stevie really charts new waters with the 9:00 minute sexy smooth jazz instrumental, Riviera Paradise. Slow and mood altering, this beauty highlights Stevie's guitar talents in an entirely different way while it changes the listener's atmosphere to tranquility in aqua blue.

I always say that the best SRV is live SRV. I was fortunate enough to see Stevie live at the Norfolk Scope in 1986. I treasure that memory. There are five bonus tracks on this edition of In Step, the first being an "SRV Speaks" segment where Stevie talks about his last "regular" job in a kitchen that ended in disaster. The other four bonus tracks are live recordings from the fateful In Step Tour including an excellent 7:28 minute version of Texas Flood. Life Without You closes the album, and at 13:17 minutes, the song is well worth the price of admission here. It features two smokin' extended guitar solos that are as good as anything Stevie has ever done. He also gets serious for several minutes during the song and talks about cleaning up his act and being there for the people who love him. It's an interesting and revealing insight into Stevie Ray Vaughan, and who he really was.

In Step won two Grammy Awards, one in 1989 for Best Traditional Blues Album, and one in 1990 for Best Contemporary Blues Album.

You really can't go wrong with this album if you like Stevie Ray Vaughan and his music. The essence and passion of SRV are clearly experienced here, and even though this isn't the blues/rock monument that Texas Flood is, it is every bit as powerful as anything SRV ever did, and even more interesting in a lot of ways because it's something different. This stuff can put sand in your crawl and bring tears to your eyes.


October 15, 2008

One of best ever

This may be my all time favorite album, at least in the top 3. It's the one you'd chose to have it stranded on that desert island. It's perfect-what more can be said. Stevie was just hitting his peak-only the angels know what more outstanding stuff he could have blessed us with had he lived.
Stevie's own words say it best-
" Life without you....all the love you passed my way
The angels have waited for so long....now they have their way
Take your place...."
August 3, 2008

SRV's Best?

Though I had initially given the crown to Texas Flood, on second thought I think that In Step might, in fact, be the best studio release from the late, great Stevie Ray Vaughan (and don't forget Double Trouble!).

In Step is a non-stop, rockin' blues party, front to back, and is chock full of great tunes and greater guitar work. "The House is Rockin'," "Crossfire," and "Tightrope" are all favorites, of course, but the album really hits a great groove after the first three tracks that carries all the way through "Scratch-N-Sniff" and "Love Me Darlin'," before ending on a beautifully atmospheric blues note on "Riviera Paradise," which I've always felt is one of SRV's best tracks.

Really an outstanding album!

As for the bonus material, well, the album is great, by itself, so any bonus material is just that...a bonus!

And on this album, the bonus tracks are really fantastic! SRV serves up live versions of three favorites, as well as a cover of Buddy Guy's "Let Me Love You Baby." All are top notch, and I particularly appreciate seeing one of my personal favorites, "Life Without You."

Fantastic SRV! GET THIS! February 8, 2008

wishing he was here

I adore this album as I do all of his music. I only wish that he were still with us. January 27, 2008

His Best Album. Period.

Okay, before you read this review, take a look at the ratio of other reviews regarding the number of stars given. At this moment, there were 57 5-Star reviews and 5 4-Star reviews. That says it all.

The first few tracks on this album show why SRV is considered the best Blues guitarist ever. "The House is Rockin'", "Tightrope", and his best radio hit, "Crossfire", are symbolic of his trademark aggressiveness when the guitar is in his hands.

One thing that a lot of people don't mention about SRV is his voice. The guitar is mesmerizing, but his voice a great compliment to his playing. Flat out, SRV shows his smoothness, not only in the album cuts, but also in the live cuts at the end.

December 29, 2007

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